Season 2
by unbrokensaviorwithperfecthair
Summary: With the events of "The Kiss" still hanging over the astronauts' shoulders, they try to regain some sense of normalty, as if that's possible.    Meanwhile, on the ground, Mission Control deals with the leak.


**SO I MISS THE SHOW. THIS IS MY TAKE ON WHAT COULD HAPPEN.**

***CORRECTION: **_**COULD'VE HAPPENED**_*****

**DON'T' OWN IT ****L**

Nadia stormed off. She should've seen it coming, she really should've. There was this special bond between Zoe and Donner, and always would be. She ignored her friends' worried glances, and slammed the door to her room. Once everyone was sure Zoe was stable, they went out onto the observation deck to have a meeting, minus Nadia of course. They were met with the stressed-out-looking face of Mike Goss.

"What do you wanna grill us on?" Ted asked.

"Surprisingly, it's nothing you guys did. There's been a leak." Mike replied.

"Who?" Jen queried.

"We don't know. Somebody who knows about the fake footage." Mike said.

"So, anybody on the floor, you mean." Donner said.

"Essentially, yes."

"Rollie didn't do it." Jen said.

"We've already ruled him out." Mike assured.

"You shouldn't of _had_ to rule him out." Jen snapped. "He would never do something like that."

"I know, I know. We had to check out every possibility, just to make the FBI happy."

"The _FBI_'s involved?" Donner asked.

"Yes." Mike answered.

"How much does the public know?" Ted asked.

"Only that the footage is fake."

"That's not too bad." Ted sighed.

"No, but we need to find the leak before the Beta Objects are revealed." Mike said.

"We'll keep an eye out for anything we hear." Mintz said. Goss nodded, then the screen went black, Venus bright in the sky.

* * *

><p>Jen walked into the lab, looking around. It felt so empty without Zoe in it. She looked up at her beeping monitor. Rollie was trying to call her. She tapped <em>accept<em>.

"Hey, Baby." Rollie said.

"Hey." She smiled.

"How's Zoe?" He asked.

"Alive." Jen replied bitterly.

"Sore topic, I see." Rollie commented.

"She's the only one I have up here except for Rufus, but it's not like I can exactly talk to a rabbit."

"Claire's saying she has a chance."

"According to Mintz, it's a 5 percent chance."

"Better than 0."

"Rollie, you don't get it. I can't see or hear Beta, and the only one other than you, me, and Beta that knew it, was Zoe! And she might die." Jen said.

"You can't think like that, Babe." Rollie said, wanting nothing more than to just hold his wife. "You're uh, heading to Mars tomorrow." Rollie said in an attempt to lighten the conversation.

"I know." She said quickly, obviously mad at him.

"I guess I'll call back in 3 hours, then." Rollie said, letting is words hang for a moment before he ended the chat.

* * *

><p>The only ones that lingered on the observation deck were Paula and Wass.<p>

"What a day." Wass said.

"You could say that again." Paula agreed.

"Wanna try to help me with my model?" He asked.

"Sure." Once they were in his room, he explained:

"Fractals are complicated. Very complicated. They're everything, yet they're nothing. I'm starting to think it's God. Or a ghost. Or something." He said lamely.

"It's not God…" Paula whispered.

"Satan, then?"

"Yes."

"You know, I wouldn't try to get on Beta's bad side. Cause, you know, it controls what happens to us." Wass said.

"I don't care." She said.

"Just don't get any of us hurt, ok?"

"Alright."

Just then, Mintz knocked on the door. Slowly, he opened it.

"I thought I'd let you guys know that all of you are going to have to talk to me about your hallucinations. Beta's starting to get violent and deadly, so we need to figure it out." He explained.

"Yay." Wass said sarcastically.

"Yeah, sorry. Eve's orders." Mintz said.

"Now she's calling the shots? Is Goss jumping up and down yet?"

"No, not yet." Mintz chuckled. "I'm starting alphabetically, to have Zoe go last. I'm up first, but I don't need to do a self-diagnosis. Which means Jen's going first." He said.

"And you're telling us this because…?" Wass asked.

"I don't really want to deal with her right now." Mintz said, smiling.

"Well, her best friend has a good chance she'll die, and her husband is a million miles away, so I kind of get it. She can be pretty scary when she's having a bad day." Wass said.

"I think she had a fight with Rollie, she hasn't left her quarters in the last 45 minutes." Mintz said.

"You could skip her." Wass suggested.

"If only I could. I don't want Goss riding me." Mintz said.

"Well, good luck, Man." Wass said, putting his hand up for a high-five. Mintz just walked past him.

* * *

><p>Looking up, as if gathering all the strength he could, Mintz knocked on the door to Jen's quarters.<p>

"What?" She snapped.

"Uh, it's me." He said.

"I don't feel like getting up." Jen said. Mintz opened the door. She didn't outright have to give him permission. They had this sort of connection after what happened in the lab, how he freaked out.

"Crazy day, huh?" He said, deciding to take it slow.

"You could say that again." Jen smiled, and Mintz knew it was fake.

"It's amazing that Zoe's alive." He said, easing into the topic.

"She better stay alive, or I'll kill her myself." Jen replied.

"I'm pretty sure that would defeat the purpose of 'stay alive'."

"Or I'll just annoy the crap out of Donner. She wouldn't want him annoyed." She said.

"That could be grounds for harassment." Mintz commented.

"What are you guys gonna do up here? Put me in isolation?" She joked, but he didn't notice the slight change in her voice at the thought of isolation.

"Eh, Goss will probably prohibit you and Rollie from talking for a week." Mintz said.

"Forgot about that." Jen said.

"Look, I don't want to do this, but we have to. We need to talk about Beta." He said, deciding the pressing problem wasn't Zoe or Rollie. He has orders to talk about her hallucinations -or lack thereof in her case- and he intends on following those orders.

"Ok." Jen shrugged in an attempt to seem nonchalant, but obviously didn't work.

"You still not having hallucinations?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah." She replied.

"Wass isn't, either." Mintz said.

"Can he see Beta? Hear it?"

"We all can." He said, then looked at her. "You, can right?"

"Actually, no. I can't." Jen admitted.

"Did you tell anyone?"

"Rollie and Zoe. Both of which I can't talk to." Jen said.

"Why can't you talk to Rollie?"

"We're fighting." She answered.

"Over what?" Mintz asked, not believing that the couple could be fighting _again_.

"It's complicated." She said. Mintz could tell her walls were coming back up, and he wasn't going to get anymore out of her tonight.

"Ok. Well, I have to go see Donner now. Unless you want to talk some more…"

"I don't." She replied glumly.

"Bye." He said, not sure of what else to say.

* * *

><p>Mintz decided on a 2-person-per-day rule unless they came to him. He really didn't feel like dealing with Donner, but he had to. He went immediately to the MedBay, knowing that's where he'd be, right by Zoe's side.<p>

"Hey." He said.

"I assume you're not here to check on Zoe…" Donner said.

"I'm not. I have to talk to you." Mintz said.

"I'll answer your questions if you answer mine." Donner bargained.

"That seems fair." Mintz nodded.

"Jen, you, and Nadia are working the medical stuff. Are they ok? Like, can they take care of Zoe or, you know… Are they too preoccupied?" Donner asked. Now Mintz realized how much the man really cared for Zoe.

"Nadia's just mad that you and Zoe could've had a baby, that you love her. Jen's going to be tense for a while, at least until Zoe's all better and her and Rollie stop fighting every hour. She just feels really alone right now. But they're fine, they'll do their jobs. You know Jen would never do anything to harm Zoe." Mintz said.

"Would Nadia?" Donner raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"She wouldn't risk her career over it." Both men smirked.

"Ok. Ask your questions." Donner sighed, as if the weight was lifted off his shoulders.

"I know this is personal, and I hate to ask about it, but I need to know what you're hallucinating." Mintz said.

"Mars." Donner said after a minute.

"Sharon and Walker." Mintz nodded understandingly. Donner kept silent, so he checked Zoe's IV fluids, then left.

* * *

><p>Back in Mission Control, Goss walked up to the catwalk, then turned on the microphone. The building was secure; any non-essential personnel, including janitors, TV anchors, friends, and tourists, were outside.<p>

"For those of you who may or may not know, we have a leak." Goss said, letting his words sink in. "This person has a connection to Trevor Williams, and either wants to make a few bucks or wants to sabotage the program. We've ruled all but several people out. Will the following people please rise: Ajay Sharma. Arnel Poe. Claire Dereux." Everyone gasped at the names; everyone knew they would _never_ do anything to jeopardize the mission. Ajay looked confused, so Goss knew he didn't do it. Arnel seemed scared. _Possibly_, he thought. And Claire looked furious. Immediately, the FBI swooped down and took Arnel out of the room. No one dared move a muscle for fear of what Goss might do, except for Ajay and Claire, who turned to glare at Goss. Goss stared down at them, then back up to the Antares.

**MY ORIGINAL PLAN WAS TO MAKE THIS LIKE AN EPISODE, BUT I FIGURED OUT THAT I HAVE PROBLEMS WRITING EPISODES. ANYWAY, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK, EVEN THOUGH I AM DOING THIS MORE FOR MY PERSONAL ENJOYMENT (AND SANITY) THAN TO IMPROVE MY WRITING.**


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